“You have to embrace the challenges and ambiguity.“
-T. Hingba
Whether it’s a holiday at the grandparent’s house, a cross-country roadtrip or an out-of-town business meeting, GPS makes the journey from point A to point B almost seamless. You can literally plan your trip down to the minute. But there’s an interesting quote floating around on Pinterest that’s attributed to Babs Hoffman, “Stop worrying about the potholes in the road and enjoy the trip.” Isn’t that counter intuitive in an era of a relentless recalculating and redirecting all in effort to avoid the potholes?
T. Hingba had a bit of recalculating on his journey, but he ultimately found a way to enjoy every minute of it. T. Hingba grew up as a pastor’s kid in Maram, Manipur, India. He studied engineering at the National Institute of Technology Agartala, India. He was living his best life as a manager at the Engine Manufacturing Unit of a shipbuilding company under the Ministry of Defense for the Government of India. After about eight years, however, T. Hingba ultimately felt a need to recalculate… to redirect.
T. Hingba wanted a new challenge and he felt that higher education definitely hit all the check boxes. As an experienced engineer and manager, he was looking for a program that could provide just the right blend of both a technical mindset as well as a management viewpoint. Baylor University stood out among the options. Baylor’s solid education credentials and its unabashedly Christian heritage were a perfect alignment with T. Hingba’s personal values and beliefs.
Ultimately pursuing an MBA-MEng joint degree, T. Hingba was also drawn to the Lab to Market Collaborative (L2M) and the L2M Fellows Program. With the Fellows Program, students assist with the management of innovations, but also have the opportunity to participate in research with the L2M startup companies. This was the perfect intersection for T. Hingba. As he puts it, “The L2M platform emerged as a veritable playground for me.”
T. Hingba’s time as an L2M Fellow was an incredible blend of innovation, technology commercialization and entrepreneurship. He was able to lead teams on more than 15 projects, all requiring intricate collaborations with protolab, bizlab, Mtac as well as Baylor faculty and researchers. He credits his time as an L2M Fellow for providing substantial growth both personally and professionally.
One particular L2M project that stands out to T. Hingba is his work on the “Valuation of MCE-5 Variable Compression Engine.” This project was significant because it allowed T. Hingba to dig deep into his knowledge and expertise of hands-on experience with internal combustion engines. The project also gave T. Hingba an opportunity for in-depth research. But most significant to T. Hingba was that the project was an introduction to the dynamic of real-time, time-constrained consulting. T. Hingba explains, “With L2M you are often navigating uncharted territory and you have to be able to embrace the challenges and ambiguity.” He continues, “Ultimately it is this very environment that can be a crucible for personal and professional growth.”
Following his August 2023 Baylor graduation, there was no recalculating for T. Hingba. His journey continued as the Entrepreneur in Residence (EiR) at the University of Colorado, Boulder. As an EiR, T. Hingba has a hands-on commitment to nurture innovation, drive technology commercialization and contribute to the entrepreneurial ecosystem. He explains, “My journey as an EiR feels like a seamless extension of the invaluable experiences I garnered during my tenure as an L2M Fellow.”
T. Hingba looks back fondly on his time as an L2M Fellow. He often refers to the experience as a journey of exploration, creativity and impact. A journey with challenges and even potholes. A journey he would undoubtedly recommend.
Continue to enjoy your journey, T. Hingba! Sic ’em!
For more information on Baylor Entrepreneurship, please visit our website at baylor.edu/business/entrepreneurship/.